Architectural Design
II
Project
#3: Light | Non-Denominational Chapel
About the Final Design
I started the
design with diagrams for the chapels and lobby, which are the most important
spaces in the building. I choose to use a circle (partitioning it into the four
spaces) which I thought would be the most efficient in capturing sunlight
throughout the day. The Main Sanctuary faces South so that it can receive
sunlight for almost the entire day. The Meditation Chapel faces East so that it
gets the light from the rising sun since the morning is the most likely and
perfect time to meditate. The Memorial Chapel faces West towards the setting
sun because the end of the day is when we tend to look back on things or
remember what we've lost. There were two things that influenced how I
approached the design from spiritual side sort of. Reveille is an upbeat and
fast paced bugle call that is played in the morning that gets you centered for
the day to come. Taps is a somber and slow paced bugle call that is played in
the evening and makes you contemplate the events of the day.
Once I had a
solid layout for chapels, I drew a 45 degree line off of the lobby and started
to place the other spaces in the building along the circulation path. To be
honest I am amazed at how it practically put itself together, with each piece
of the puzzle finding its place. The final floor plan splits into two wings
after the entry lobby. There is one wing for the storage and offices which are
more private spaces and one wing for the library, conference room and bathrooms
which are more public spaces. I also added an outdoor sanctuary between the
chapels and the offices which seemed to be the ideal spot for it. The main
entrance is along The Mall and I modified my original layout to make it more of
a formal entrance, and make it obvious that it is the front of the building. There
is also a more private entrance (for clergy and staff) right by the offices and
off of the existing sidewalk behind Smith Hall. The building fit very well into
the site and I was glad I was dead set on putting it where I did. The building
also had to be a red brick color in order to make it fit in with the rest of
the campus, unlike a certain other building on campus.
I will say
upfront that the building is incomplete because most of my ideas for allowing
light to reflect into the building didn't come together. The only idea that
fully materialized was the horizontal slats in the southern, western and
eastern facing walls that bounce light up onto the walls and ceiling. From the
outside it almost appears as if they are windows, which was the effect I was
going for.
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